


I Used to Think That I Was Better Alone

by justyrae



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Lifeguards, Alternate Universe - Surfers, M/M, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-18
Updated: 2015-03-18
Packaged: 2018-03-18 08:01:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,811
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3562235
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/justyrae/pseuds/justyrae
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Niall is a lifeguard at an Australian beach who has his eye out for everyone's safety, especially that fit surfer dude. He keeps on trying to think of ways to navigate his way into his social circle, he just didn't count on saving him to be one of them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	I Used to Think That I Was Better Alone

**Author's Note:**

  * For [](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts).



> honestly, who wouldn't stare at Liam on the beach all day?
> 
> big thanks to my lovely team of betas: A, T, and J. I don't know what I'd do without any of you <3
> 
> title from 'Rock Me' by One Direction (half because I forgot about a title/panicked to pick one and half because shut up it works okay)

Niall hadn't meant to move to Australia. It started out as a summer visit (or, rather winter when he actually got there) to see family, but when the time came to leave Niall just...didn't. Sure, he'd gone home to visit a few times since then, but he kept coming back to Australia.

His mum - after she'd gotten over her baby leaving her and not coming back - said she'd always expected him to end up there. She told him about when they'd visited when he was younger and how he'd begged and pleaded not to leave.

"You belong somewhere that the sun shines more often than not," she told him, "somewhere you can shine just as brightly."

At the time, Niall had taken that as her blessing to stay (which it was, in some respect). He thought of his mum's words every time he felt the sun on his skin, which was more often than not given the line of work he went into.

Despite his fair Irish skin, he became a lifeguard at one of the beaches within walking distance of his flat. The fact that there was a pub in the middle between his flat and the beach was a perk that Niall most certainly did not make his decision on. Mostly.

Still, it had been around two years since Niall started living in Sydney full time, and he was just as happy as he had been when he first arrived. He liked having a routine: spending his days at the beach, walking to the pub for dinner, and then stumbling home afterwards to fall into his bed, just to do it all over again the next day. Some people might call it boring, but Niall didn't think so at all.

He made his fair share of friends within the first year, most of whom either work alongside him at the beach or visit the same pub on his way home. Never in a million years would Niall wish for anything more than what he's got in his life right now.

Well, _almost_ anything.

Here's the thing: Niall's got a strict policy about not getting involved with people who are in Australia on holiday. Sure, a shag here and there can be fun but ultimately, they leave and Niall stays. That's just how it works.

It's mostly to protect Niall from falling too hard for someone who won't be around in a week or a month, and there's not a single person in the world who wouldn't agree that it's for the best. The last thing Niall needs is to be hung up on someone who lives on the other side of the world.

This plan did not account for Liam Payne.

The first time Niall saw him was a day just like any other. Niall had been on duty for a few hours, already having sweat through his first layer of sun cream. He was in the middle of re-applying when he spotted a ridiculously fit boy halfway down the beach, walking alongside another boy and the both of them were carrying surfboards.

Niall had seen his fair share of surfers in his time spent as a lifeguard, but he'd never been so _affected_ by the sight of anyone before. He lost his grip on the bottle of sun cream in his hand, and it fell to the ground several feet below his chair.

"Fuckin'…" he grumbled under his breath as he climbed down. By the time he'd gotten back into his seat with the bottle in hand, the two boys had picked a spot nearby to get into the water.

Niall tried not to stare, he really did. He was _supposed_ to keep an eye on everyone on the beach, not just hopelessly stare at one fit surfer. He's seen hundreds of surfers, what made this one so special? Still, he spent so long with his eyes fixed on this particular one that he didn't realize when his shift ended until his replacement, Luke, was shouting at him to come down.

"Usually you're aching to get to the pub," he teased as Niall climbed down.

"Shut up," Niall replied, thankful that his cheeks were still pink enough from his last sunburn that Luke wouldn't be able to tell he was blushing.

Niall went straight home that night and took a long shower, trying to scrub every trace of the beach from his skin because it all reminded him of the boy he hadn't even spoken to. For fuck's sake, he didn't even know the boy's name! But as much as he tried, he still went to bed with that same boy on his mind and a hope in his heart that he'd see him again the next day.

*

The boy and his friend came to the beach the next day. And the next day, and the day after that. Niall didn't speak to him on any of those days; he just watched from his lifeguard chair. He felt like the biggest creep in the world, but he couldn't help it. It was especially bad when the boy would pull his wetsuit off halfway and walk around with his bare chest just _out there_ for all to see.

The first time that happened, Niall nearly fell out of his chair. It certainly didn't help when the two of them walked by and Niall got an up close and personal look at the boy's chest.

That was also the day that Niall learned his name. He'd only managed to catch it at the end of a remark his friend made, but Niall's ears perked up with he heard the name _Liam_.

"Shut up, Lou," Liam replied in regards to whatever his friend had said - Niall had been trying extremely hard not to eavesdrop.

"Just saying, Li."

"Shut _up_ , Louis!"

Liam pushed Louis away from him and they started squabbling, but they'd walked too far for Niall to keep up with their conversation.

After that, it all went downhill.

Niall tried not to think about Liam when he wasn't at the beach - especially not late at night when he couldn't sleep. He knew it was bad news to be thinking about anyone this much, let alone someone he'd never even spoken to.

As much as he tried, Niall just couldn't keep him out of his mind. And he just can't stop thinking about the way the ocean water had dripped down his chest and how very badly Niall wanted to be the one to lick it off, and - oh, fuck.

Niall closed his eyes and let out a small groan as he slowly slid his shaking hand under his pants. This was so wrong, _so very wrong_. But - Niall justified this in his head, letting out a gasp when he wrapped his hand around himself - it feels so fucking good.

Of course, later when he was trying to catch his breath and dealing with a rather sticky situation in his pants, shame crept into his mind and he felt very dirty, indeed.

"Can't do that again," he grumbled to himself as he washed his hands a few minutes after.

Somehow, saying those words aloud triggered his brain into suggesting that the only logical next step would be to introduce himself. Then it wouldn't be weird, right?

"Hi, I'm Niall and I…" he trailed off, muttering to himself as he got back into bed, "got off thinking about your chest, bloody hell."

Niall groaned as he pulled his duvet over his head, arguing with himself as he shut his eyes tightly. There was a nagging feeling that he wouldn't be able to think about anything else until he said at least one word to Liam, even if it's just hello. Niall resigned himself to the fact that he had to do it. He had to work up the nerve to talk to him.

"Tomorrow," he told himself. "I'll do it tomorrow."

On the fifth day, Liam didn't show up.

Or, at least he didn't show up at the same time he and his friend Louis had been showing up every day that week. Niall tried not to let it get to him but he couldn't stop himself from scanning every inch of the beach he could see every ten minutes, just hoping to catch a glimpse of Liam walking by.

All morning Niall had been thinking of what to say when he saw Liam, how he would casually strike up a conversation. He'd gone over every detail in his head, played it out a hundred different ways and each one ended with Liam finding Niall charming and wonderful and wanting to spend every minute of every day of the rest of his life with him.

Naturally, Niall had been bright red for most of the day. And he was feeling more and more foolish with every passing minute that Liam didn't appear.

With no more than half an hour left in his shift, Niall was feeling fairly miserable. For all he knew, Liam had gone back to wherever he was from and Niall would never see him again. He cursed himself, called himself stupid over and over in his head for waiting so long, for becoming so infatuated with a boy he didn't know.

 _This is why there are rules_ , he told himself. _To keep you from making stupid mistakes and getting your heart broken._

"Stupid," he muttered as he pushed his sunglasses up further onto the bridge of his nose.

He resigned himself to the fact that Liam wasn't coming that day. Part of him wanted to shut his eyes and slump down in his chair until his replacement came to relieve him. But he was a professional (more or less) and he had a job to do.

As he started to look around the beach yet again - ignoring the twisty feeling in the pit of his stomach every time he saw someone with a surfboard - and it's entirely possible that his heart stopped when he saw two familiar figures traipsing along the sand.

Only Liam was holding a surfboard, and they both seemed to be moving far slower than any of the previous days they'd come. Niall watched with a smile as Louis sprawled out on the sand in their usual spot, immediately covering his face with his arms to shield it from the sun.

The smile on Niall's face was probably blinding and most certainly ridiculous, but he couldn't help it. He was _so_ gone for this boy. He was _so_ screwed.

Still, he'd made a promise to himself: he _had_ to talk to him.

Of course, by the time he'd gathered up the courage to climb down from his chair, Liam was already in the water. Niall slowly made his way down the beach, still psyching himself up as he walked through the sand.

He was keeping an eye on Liam in the water, trying to make it seem as nonchalant as possible. Nothing freaks beachgoers out more than a lifeguard walking by with his eyes fixed on someone in the water; makes people nervous that something's gone wrong.

Ironically, that's exactly what happened.

One minute Liam was up on his board, surfing and smiling like there was nothing wrong in the world. The next, a wave came out of nowhere and knocked him clear off his board. He was pulled underwater instantly and he didn't resurface.

Niall stared at the water, begging and pleading in his head for Liam to pop back up. Every second that he didn't reappear was another second Niall wasted standing stock still on the beach.

"What're you doing?!" a voice screeched from beside him, breaking Niall out of his frozen stupor. Niall whipped around to see Liam's friend staring at him with a harsh look.

"I—"

"You're the bloody lifeguard!" he shouted. "Get out there!" He shoved Niall forward, causing him to stumble a little through the sand but he recovered quickly enough that soon he was running towards the water as fast as he could.

Logically speaking, he should've run back to grab one of his rescue tubes _before_ rushing into the water. By the time Liam resurfaced, Niall had swum out to him and he discovered that trying to pull an unconscious boy against the waves without a rescue tube was far more difficult than he thought.

He was out of breath by the time he made it back to shore, and a small crowd had formed around the two of them. Niall tried to lay Liam down onto the sand as gently as possible while asking everyone to stay back and give them some room over the shout of someone who was calling an ambulance.

"You have to save him!"

"Back up, please!" Niall begged, but Liam's friend crouched down on his other side and started yelling for him to wake up. "Please, I need you to—"

"You don't understand, he's my best mate!"

"Lou--" Niall quickly stopped himself from using Louis' name, hiding the abrupt switch with a sharp sigh. "Look, what's your name?"

"Louis," he replied, panting heavily as his eyes darted back and forth between Liam and Niall. "Please," he said softly, "you have to save Liam."

"I'm going to," Niall promised, "but you have to give me some room."

Louis sat back on his heels and watched as Niall bent down over Liam to check his breathing. He had one hand on Liam's wrist to check his pulse - weak, but still there - but he wasn't breathing. Niall closed his eyes and cursed himself for hesitating for so long.

Adrenaline was pumping through his veins as he put his hands over Liam's heart and started doing chest compressions, struggling to remember how many he had to do before checking his breathing again. Niall hadn't had to save anyone like this before - in the few years he'd been lifeguarding, he'd been lucky enough to avoid having anyone get into serious trouble on his watch.

The fact that his first big rescue just happened to be the same boy he'd been lusting over all week was just the icing on the cake, _clearly_.

After thirty compressions, Niall tilted Liam's head back and checked for his breathing again. When he didn't hear a single breath, his heart sank. He knew what he had to do, obviously, but he'd rather hoped the first time he put his lips on Liam's would be under better circumstances.

He pinched Liam's nose and bent down to put his mouth over Liam's, exhaling deeply into Liam's mouth while keeping his eyes on Liam's chest. It rose and Niall had never felt so relieved to see a simple movement. He expelled another breath before resuming chest compressions, muttering a plea for Liam to take a breath on his own.

Niall gave Liam another two deep breaths from his own lungs and just as he was about to start a third round of compressions, Liam sucked in a deep breath and started coughing up water as he nearly knocked Niall clear off him.

"You did it!" Louis cried in relief, and there was a general murmur of agreement from the crowd around them - some even started to clap.

"Alright, excitement's over," Niall said shakily as he got to his feet and started shooing people away. "Let the poor man breathe, yeah? Ambo's on its way."

Louis had pulled Liam into a tight hug and was scolding him over and over when Niall turned back to the pair. He kneeled down on the sand and waited for Louis to let go, trying to concentrate on anything other than the pounding of his heart or how badly his hands were shaking.

"M'fine, Lou," Liam croaked as he tried to pull away.

"You are not! You nearly drowned, you idiot!" Louis let go of him and Liam laid back down on the sand, turning to look at Niall for the first time.

"Lucky you were around," he said with a hoarse laugh. "I owe you one."

"S'my job," Niall replied with a small shrug.

"Should've seen him, Li. Brilliant, he was."

"Sorry I missed it," Liam remarked with a chuckle, making Louis smack him upside the head. "Hey!"

"Don't fucking joke about it," he snapped. "Practically gave me a heart attack. Dunno what I would've told your mum."

"What happened to my board?" Liam asked, ignoring Louis as he looked at Niall again. Niall froze for a moment, carefully turning his head towards the shore and the waves coming in. He'd been so caught up with trying to get Liam out of the water that he'd completely forgotten about his surfboard (not that it was a priority anyway).

"Umm," Niall said as he looked at Liam again, "think it's gone, mate. Sorry."

"Shit," Liam said as he sighed. "Oh well, maybe it's a sign."

"Fucking right it is," Louis replied. "Serves you right."

"Lou—"

"No, Liam, you listen—"

They continued arguing as Niall's ears perked up at the sound of sirens, knowing he had to make sure Liam got checked out.

"I'm gonna get the paramedics down here," Niall said, interrupting their argument as he got to his feet. Liam quickly grabbed his ankle, nearly causing Niall to trip and fall into the sand.

"Sorry," he apologized quickly, "please, I'm fine, I don't need—"

"Have to, it's my job," Niall explained as he told himself that the pounding of his heart was residual adrenaline and _not_ due to the fact that Liam's hand was still wrapped around his ankle.

"Let the man do his job, Liam!"

"But they'll take me to A&E and honestly, I'm fine, I don't—"

"They still need to check you out, alright?" Niall said with a sigh. "Humour me."

"Yeah, Liam," Louis added. " _Humour him_."

"Alright, alright." Liam laughed softly. "You win."

The paramedics were already halfway to Liam by the time he agreed, and Niall lingered to give his statement and to make sure Liam was going to be fine. If he was hanging around for any other reason, it was entirely coincidental.

"Looks like you'll make it," he joked lightly once the paramedics had left.

"Yeah, thanks to you." Liam smiled and Niall quickly looked down at his feet, feeling his cheeks turn pink.

"Told you, s'my job."

"Still, I feel like I ought to repay you somehow." Liam nudged Niall lightly and he felt himself blush even more. He was absolutely, positively going to pass it off as getting too much sun.

"You don't have to," he mumbled.

"I want to," Liam assured him. "Let me buy you a drink or summat."

"I don't—"

"He's just going to keep asking," Louis remarked, reappearing at Liam's side after having gathered up their things he'd left behind in his rush to meet the two of them. "Might as well say yes and get it over with."

"Shut up," Liam whispered harshly, smiling bashfully at Niall when he caught his eye. "Ignore him, he's an idiot."

"Takes one to know one," Louis grumbled.

"Alright, alright," Niall said with a laugh. "One drink can't hurt, can it?"

"Excellent!" Liam's face lit up when he smiled again and if he hadn't known it already, Niall knew then that he was in trouble.

*

It's never just one drink with Niall. One turns into two, which turns into three and four and five a hell of a lot faster than Niall ever means it to but it always happens just like clockwork.

By the time he realized how many pints he'd let Liam and Louis bring him, it was far too late. He was well past buzzed and right on schedule to reach completely smashed.

The problem was, Liam and Louis were _fun_. Niall always had fun with his mates, but this was different. They didn't spend all night talking about what they'd all seen at the beach earlier that day, instead Niall heard tons of stories about the things they'd done before they landed themselves in Australia.

They'd been all over Europe - France, Germany, Spain, you name it - and had even made their way to Japan. Niall was certain he'd never laughed so hard in his life after hearing Louis tell him how Liam had been entirely confused when they'd seen snow in Japan.

"I thought it'd be warm!" Liam protested as Niall cackled, nearly falling out of his seat.

Still, as good of a time as he was having, in the back of his mind Niall knew he shouldn't have let them keep getting him drinks. He should've just had the one drink and then politely excused himself from their company and gone home.

It was too late for that now. Niall was already attached.

"Another round?" Louis asked after downing the dregs of his pint. He didn't wait for an answer from either of them before sliding out of his seat and taking off towards the bar.

"Definitely won't go surfing tomorrow," Liam said with a chuckle as he tapped his fingers against the glass in his hand.

"Good plan," Niall replied with a half-smile.

Liam had explained that the reason he'd fallen off his surfboard earlier in the day was because he and Louis had gone out drinking the night before and he'd been nursing a hangover. He thought he'd been better off than Louis, who had opted to stay on the beach and nap. He didn't think that he'd get dizzy the minute he stood up on his surfboard and end up falling into the water.

"I'd hate to have to pull you out of the ocean again," Niall added, making Liam laugh in embarrassment and cover his face.

"Sorry, again."

"Nah," Niall waved his hand at Liam, "all in a day's work, innit?"

Liam grinned as he slid over to the other side of the booth and hooked his arm around Niall's shoulders. If Niall's cheeks hadn't already been red from all the alcohol, they surely would've turned bright red when Liam touched him.

 _Not good_ , Niall's mind threw up a hundred red flags as Liam tilted his head and brushed his against Niall's. His heart started to race and his palms started to sweat, but Niall stayed still as Liam turned to smile at him.

"M'glad you came out," Liam said with a bashful smile.

"Couldn't say no, could I?" Niall managed to reply with a shaky laugh. Distantly, he wondered where Louis was and why he hadn't brought the new round back yet. But based on the look on Liam's face, it was clear Niall was the only one.

"Nope," Liam replied with a soft laugh. He adjusted his arm around Niall's shoulder, dropping it further down his back to give himself enough space to put his head on Niall's shoulder.

If Niall's mind had a hundred red flags before, now it had a thousand. He hadn't let anyone get this close in a long time, and he couldn't help but crave the way it felt when Liam touched him. But he had a _rule_. He couldn't break his own rule, even if he really wanted to.

"I should be getting home," he mumbled under his breath, half-hoping it was too soft for Liam to hear.

Liam made an indignant noise and Niall jumped a little when Liam's hand tightened around his waist, and he knew Liam had heard what he said.

"You can't go," he said, turning his head so his nose brushed against Niall's jaw, "we've got another round coming."

"Think Louis abandoned us, mate." Niall laughed awkwardly and Liam made another noise.

"Still can't leave," Liam whined. "We're having fun, aren't we?"

"Yeah," Niall answered shakily. Liam kept rubbing his nose against Niall's jawline and sending shivers down his spine.

 _This is bad_ , the voice in the back of Niall's head kept repeating over and over. Niall forced himself to pull away from Liam, to pull himself out of Liam's grip and climb out of the booth.

"Niall—"

"I really should go," Niall interrupted, pointedly ignoring the frown on Liam's face as he stared at his shoes. "H-Have to get up early."

"Niall," Liam repeated sadly.

"M'sure Louis'll be back any minute," Niall continued, "you two will carry on without me."

"I don't—" Liam stared at Niall in confusion and Niall shuffled his feet, feeling more and more awkward by the second.

He never should've stayed this long. He should've left after one drink. If he had, he wouldn't be so torn between knowing he should leave and wanting to stay.

"I don't want you to go," Liam said with a pout, "come sit back down."

"Nah, I shouldn't."

"Why not?"

"Because," Niall said as he lifted his right shoulder in a shrug, "y'know."

"No," Liam replied, furrowing his eyebrows and continuing to stare at Niall with confusion. "Why not?"

"Because," Niall started, breaking off with a nervous laugh. "M'just..." He stared at Liam, hoping he would drop the subject, or at the very least pretend like he knew what Niall was trying to say.

He'd never had to flat out tell anyone this before. It had always been easy, or they just assumed the night was a one-off. With the way Liam was looking at him, Niall had the sinking feeling that he'd gotten it all wrong.

"Just what?"

"That guy you meet on holiday," Niall blurted out. Liam kept staring at him, and Niall found that he couldn't stop himself from continuing.

"Y'know, the guy you'll go home and tell your proper mates about but you won't remember my name. You'll just remember me as the bloke that pulled you out of the ocean and you had a good laugh with after." Niall sighed. "I know m'nothing more than that. S'just the way it is."

"Niall—"

"I shouldn't have come out in the first place. I liked you but it was stupid of me and I knew—" Niall paused to inhale deeply and get a grip on his thoughts, "I knew better. M'sorry, I've got to go."

"Niall!" Liam called after him but Niall resolutely didn't look back over his shoulder as he walked away.

By the time Niall got back to his flat, tears were steadily streaming down his face. He didn't turn on a single light as he made his way to his bedroom, immediately crawling under the covers without even taking his shoes off.

"Not again," he groaned, sniffling miserably into his pillow.

He'd tried so hard not to fall for Liam; not to fall for another boy who, ultimately, was going to end up leaving him behind. He'd made a rule for a _reason_ , damn it.

And as hard as he tried to forget, there was no erasing Harry Styles from his memory.

Niall hadn't meant to fall. He knew from day one that he and Harry were just a fling and that Harry was leaving at the end of the week. Somehow it still didn't stop him from becoming too attached too fast and being left alone and heartbroken.

He couldn't and didn't blame Harry, it wasn't his fault. Niall had no one to blame for it but himself, so he'd made his rule so he'd never have to go through that again.

Yet when Liam Payne came along, Niall fell just as hard and just as fast.

"No," Niall told himself firmly, ignoring the way his voice cracked and caught on a sob. "No,"  he repeated, "not this again."

He threw the covers back towards the foot of the bed and pulled himself up, forcing himself to walk into his bathroom. He shed his clothes as he went and turned his shower on to the coldest setting.

It was nearly unbearable, but it's what he needed. He had to wake himself up and get a grip.

After his ice-cold shower he put on a new pair of pants and crawled back into bed, all the while repeating one sentence in his mind: _it's over_.

*

Surprising to no one at all, Niall had a hangover the following morning. He kept his eyes firmly shut behind his sunglasses for most of the morning, cracking them open every once in a while to scan the beach for trouble. It wasn't the worst hangover of his life by far, but it certainly wasn't going to be one he'd forget.

For the first time in weeks, he wasn't looking for Liam. In fact, he was _praying_ Liam wouldn't show up.

As relieved as he was when Liam didn't show up at the normal time, Niall couldn't deny he felt a twinge of sadness in his heart. Still, he pushed it down as far as he could and reminded himself that this was for the best. He had to protect himself at all costs.

Though the day dragged on at a snail's pace, the end of Niall's shift crept up on him again. Luke was waiting for him to climb down with a look on his face that Niall didn't trust one bit.

"What?" he demanded, wincing at the tone of his own voice.

"Heard you had a bit of a meltdown at the pub last night," Luke replied, "you alright?"

"M'fine," Niall mumbled, "just drank too much, is all."

"Alright," Luke said with a shrug, "but I think you might have some explaining to do."

"What?" Niall asked as Luke gestured over his shoulder. He looked up to see Liam standing no more than a few feet away, giving Niall a hesitant wave when their eyes met. "Oh, fuck."

"Good luck!" Luke clapped Niall on the shoulder before darting around him and climbing up into the abandoned chair.

Niall had half a mind to push the bloody thing over.

He approached Liam slowly, having no idea what he was going to say or why Liam was even there in the first place. The night before might have been a slight blur in Niall's mind but he was fairly certain he'd gotten his point across.

"What're you doing here?" he asked.

"I just don't understand," Liam replied with a sigh. "I've been up all night going over it with Lou, and I still don't get it."

"What's not to get?" Niall replied shortly. "I told you--"

"I know what you said," Liam interrupted, "but I don't understand. Why would you think that I wouldn't remember your name?"

"It's just--" Niall sighed. "That's not the point, is it?"

"Then what is?" Liam asked. "You're not some bloke I met on holiday--"

"But I am," Niall interrupted, entirely missing Liam adding _m'not even on bloody holiday_. "At the end of the week or whatever, you're going to go back home and forget all about me so it doesn't matter, does it?"

"Why do you do that?" Liam asked softly. "Why d'you put yourself down like that?"

"I don't, I just...I can't, alright?"

"Can't what?"

"I can't get close to someone who's just going to leave," Niall said in a rush, "I did it once and m'not doing it again!"

"But…" Liam gave him a careful look, "I'm not going anywhere."

Niall blinked. "What?"

"If you'd given me a chance to explain," Liam said with a soft chuckle, "you'd know that I moved here last week. Louis' the one on holiday, technically. He came to help me get settled."

"I don't…" Niall stared at Liam blankly, "what?"

"S'what I've been trying to tell you," Liam said. "I'm not going anywhere, and I don't understand why you'd push me away even if I was."

"It's easier, that way." Niall dropped his eyes to the sand. "Can't hurt me if I don't let you in."

"That's mad," Liam replied. "That's no way to live."

"It was working well enough 'til you came around," Niall muttered.

Liam took a step towards Niall and reached out to wrap his hand around Niall's bicep, gently pulling Niall to him. Niall went reluctantly, but couldn't deny to himself that he wanted to be as close to Liam as he could get. So much for having any willpower at all.

"D'you think we could start over?" Liam asked softly. "Without your thinking I'm leaving in a few days and without me nearly drowning?"

Niall laughed before he could stop himself, nodding his head as he slowly met Liam's eye.

"Yeah, alright."

"Cool." Liam squeezed Niall's arm for a moment before he dropped it and held out his hand. "My name's Liam, I'm a marine biologist, and I just moved here."

Niall stared at Liam's hand for a moment before he took a deep breath and took Liam's hand in his own and held it tightly.

"I'm Niall, I'm a lifeguard, and I've been mad about you since you showed up on my beach a week ago."

Liam laughed delightedly, filling Niall's heart with a warmth he hadn't felt in ages. He could feel his cheeks burning and the smile that had suddenly appeared on his face wasn't going anywhere any time soon.

"Nice to meet you, Niall." Liam smiled brightly. "D'you wanna grab a bite?"

Niall pulled his hand out of Liam's, only to switch to holding his other hand and lacing their fingers together.

"I'd love to."

*

Two Years Later

"He'll be here any minute!"

"He's never been on time a day in his life!"

"How do you know?"

"You told me, you numpty."

Liam stopped trying to fight Niall off and pouted, giving Niall the chance to pin him back down to the bed and cover Liam's lips with his own. He couldn't help but smile through the kiss, even when Liam whimpered impatiently.

"You cheated," Liam whined after Niall pulled away.

"You pouted. Couldn't help myself." Niall beamed.

"Shut up," Liam mumbled as he blushed. Niall leaned in and started peppering kisses across Liam's cheek, making him try and squirm away.

"Hey, come back here!" Niall said as Liam rolled over and out of his grip, quickly sliding off the bed.

"I told you, Lou's gonna be here any minute and we've barely cleaned up at all."

"He's not gonna care, Li," Niall said with a huff, "now c'mere and kiss me before I lose you to your best mate for the weekend."

Liam rolled his eyes but willingly crawled back onto the bed and on top of Niall, smiling as he kissed him.

"You could come with us, y'know," Liam mumbled as he kissed Niall's neck. "Surfing's fun."

"Nah," Niall said, his breath hitching when Liam nipped at his skin with his teeth, "I'd rather just watch you."

"Pervert." Liam smirked against Niall's neck, gripping Niall's hips and pulling them flush against each other. Niall gasped softly, letting out a breathy chuckle as he tugged on Liam's hair to drag his head up so he could bring their lips back together.

"You love it," he mumbled against Liam's lips.

"Love you," Liam replied.

Niall smiled widely. "Love you too."

 

**Author's Note:**

> [my tumblr](http://imlouisaf.tumblr.com)


End file.
